Victory by Roger Linn I
n winter there’s a warm welcome inside for everybody and in summer we sit outside, drinking our Harveys, eating delicious food and for those of us who love the sport, watching village cricket on the green where I once scored my one and only fi fty. The children, of course, occupy themselves on the swings and slides in the small well-fenced playground, while the dogs lie panting under the tables. It is a vision of heaven that only a Hollywood fi lm producer could conjure up as the perfect image of rural English village life. And, in truth, that is exactly the sort of dream that Jane Pedgrift and Janet Shepherd have always had for The Victory. They moved into the pub 10 months ago with the clear intention of integrating it even more into the local community. Janet explained: “The Victory had become a place
68 SUSSEX LIVING FOR MID SUSSEX April 2011
for the village pub
Winter and summer, my family’s favourite Sunday morning activity – and I’m including the grandchildren and the dogs – is to walk in the woods surrounding Nyman’s Gardens and then repair to The Victory Inn at Staplefi eld for lunch.
where you’d go just for the food, but we wanted to recreate the atmosphere of a really excellent local pub – one where you’d go for a pint and a chat, or a light lunch with friends, or a full-blown dinner with some of our excellent wines.” Jane, who is the chef in the partnership, chipped in: “We think that the words ‘gastro-pub’ have the emphasis in the wrong place. The pub really ought to come fi rst. The Victory is fi rst and foremost a great pub – with a great atmosphere – where we serve great food. We believe passionately that the pub should be the heart of the village, but open and welcoming to everybody.” As if to underline the friendly atmosphere, I noticed two wicker baskets on the low windowsill just inside the pub’s doorway. One contained dog biscuits and the other was full of sweets – dogs and
children are clearly welcome here. In another example of thoughtfulness, or perhaps the expertise that comes from the couple’s years in the food and hospitality business, the menus offer not only children-sized meals which are as wholesome and fresh as the grown-ups’, but small portion meals for adults who don’t have a big appetite. What a good idea – now Granny doesn’t have to pay full price and leave half her food!
Janet and Jane came to Staplefi eld from Spain where they ran a restaurant on the Costa Blanca for fi ve years, although both of them have many years of managerial experience in the UK pub trade. In fact, Janet claims to have started at the age of seven when her parents took over their fi rst pub in Lancashire. “I’m the Landlady, but I’m just as happy being called Landlord,” she says. “I love the warmth, the banter and the buzz that a good bar and a good publican can create.” A committed Blackpool FC supporter, I’ll wager she knows more about sport than most of her male customers and she’ll certainly hold her own over the bar. There’s a real knack to creating that special atmosphere and it requires
www.sussexliving.com
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